“This is all overwhelming,” said Oklahoma defensive back Chijioke Onyenegecha. “You look at it, USC got a bunch of great athletes; we got a bunch of great athletes. They got superstars; we got superstars. They got a great quarterback; we’ve got a great quarterback. They got a great running back; we’ve got a great running back. They got good DBs; we got good DBs. They got great receivers; we’ve got great receivers. It’s the most incredible matchup of all time.”

“This game has such a star magnitude to it,” said USC power back LenDale White. “Four Heisman candidates and two Heisman winners. It’s Hollywood. This is the most publicity I’ve been around for any game.”

Which spectacular running back will bust the supernova big run: the Trojans’ shooting star Reggie Bush, who finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting, or the Sooners’ careening asteroid, Adrian Peterson, who finished second?

“You have four guys who made it to New York,” said USC offensive guard John Drake. “Two guys who already on the award. You got the first freshman ever to be runnerup for the Heisman Trophy. What else can you want out there?”

Will Shaun Cody leave White in a black hole or will Dan Cody leave Leinart seeing stars? Will Mark Clayton streak across Pro Player Stadium leaving a vapor trail of Trojans behind him or will Dwayne Jarrett go galaxy on the Sooners?

“It’s going to be fun to see what the stars can do on a star-filled night,” said USC running back LenDale White.

This is what happens when the two teams which have been at or near the top of the college football galaxy the last three seasons finally meet. USC and Oklahoma enter the game with identical 12-0 records.

Peterson was a finalist for the Doak Walker Award; Bush was a semifinalist.

USC’s Cody was a finalist for Lombardi and Hendricks Awards. Oklahoma guard Jammal Brown won the Outland Trophy.

USC linebacker Matt Grootegoed was a Butkus Award finalist and punter Tom Mallone was a finalist for the Ray Guy Award.

No need to head to South Beach. The stars are here.

“You look around and it kind of humbles you,” said Oklahoma nickel back Brandon Shelby. “Just to play with or against one of these guys is a blessing. But to play on the field with all these guys? Ten years from now you can say to your son, ‘Hey, I played with those guys.’ ”

There are guys we haven’t mentioned who would have superstar status if they played on almost any other team in the country.